Most people learn about compassion from their family members and/or leaders of religious organizations. But a school in Ireland wants to be part of the discussion by ditching homework for one month and, instead, assigning “acts of kindness” to its students.
On Mondays, the kids are asked to reach out to an elderly individual and communicate with them. On Tuesdays, the students are tasked with making a family member’s life easier by taking over a chore or helping without being asked. Wednesdays are for random acts of kindness of any kind. Thursdays are for doing something compassionate for themselves or to take care of their own mental and physical well-being.
The students are asked to keep track of the kind deeds in a Kindness Diary. The school has also set up a Kindness Bucket where students can write down and deposit positive observations and affirmations to boost their fellow classmates’ esteem. On Friday mornings, a teacher randomly selects a handful of notes and reads them out loud.
That’s not all – each class has also been tasked with cooperating in a collective act of kindness for the community. The challenge is brainstormed by the students then conducted as a team. A Facebook post reveals that the unconventional curriculum has been in place for the past three years. The result is reportedly overwhelmingly positive and deemed to be a huge success.